The invisible impact of frozen conflicts: a case study of foreign domestic workers in Cyprus

While foreign domestic workers (FDW) are vulnerable everywhere in the world, the frozen conflict has exacerbated their vulnerability in Cyprus. This is first, because it has deprioritised the feminist agenda, which has had a disproportionate negative impact on FDW, the vast majority of whom are women. Second, the conflict has fuelled nationalist speech and policies, directed not only against Turks and Turkish Cypriots, but also against others, who are perceived as sharing the out-group’s characteristics. And third, it has skewed the public’s understanding of human rights and cultivated a sense of victimhood among the Greek Cypriot majority. This has provided an excuse for why protecting the rights of the vulnerable, including FDW, is not considered a priority. These phenomena explain the paradox of why a group like FDW that is seemingly entirely disconnected from the frozen conflict, is nevertheless profoundly affected by it.